Only Superman owns more spandex.

That is how long it has taken me to get my conditioning to the point where I can do the toughest workout (Fire 45) without taking an extra break to catch my breath.

I actually felt strong and energized through most of the workout. There were points when I started to fade but I told myself, “You’re not tired!”

Finally.

Although my clothes aren’t fitting much differently, and I haven’t lost a whole slew of pounds, (see: poor eating) I feel fantastic. I’ve got much more energy and just the sense of accomplishment at being able to “work out this hard” is worth a lot.

So, I took an extra day off last week and pushed all my workouts down. Then I also took off Saturday night and pushed them down again. However: Sunday night’s Fire 55 was my best workout yet! I felt so strong and energized, I am still riding that high and looking forward to tonight’s workout.

I am going on vacation starting Thursday night and trying to formulate a plan. I would love to come back another week into my rotation by not taking any time off, but I also wonder how realistic this is- am I setting myself up for failure? Would a better option be to shoot for every other day? Should I just try to go running in the mornings or something?

Last week was really tough. Even though the workouts are getting (slightly!) easier, I was just dead this week. I don’t think I am getting enough sleep for how much punishment my body is taking. Part of this is late-night workouts and an 11 month old who still wakes up every 4 hours and a working mom who doesn’t see him enough during the day so she still gets up to feed him at a detriment to her health. I even had one night where I just. couldn’t. do. it. But on the nights I could, I pushed (dragged?) myself to new heights and really gained an appreciation for my favorite Turbo Fire workout. That’s right, I’m talking about Stretch 40.

Once I figured out how many Sun Salutations you do at the start (2 slow, 4 with intensity) they became enjoyable instead of endless. Once I defined how many warrior sequences you do immediately following (2 slow, 2 with intensity) it also became manageable. And the Final Relaxation at the end- heaven!

Fire 45 is still kicking my trash. It’s like Chalene says at the end- “This is not an easy workout”. She also says “Know how blessed you are to be able to workout this hard!” I agree. It is a blessing to have a body that can keep up with something this challenging.

Tone and Sculpt 30 are both perfect length, and surprisingly effective. Turbo Jam’s 45 minute Turbo Sculpt just seemed to go on and on and on. I am thinking about substituting Booty Sculpt + Abs down the road for when I really get tired of Tone or Sculpt 30.

I almost at the half way point and I am wondering if I am going to be ready for the Advanced DVDs in a month and a half.

This week I am dedicating to my Father. He was an athlete in High School/ College, but has developed a lot of unhealthy habits (tons of soda + sedentary lifestyle). Thing is, he could drop it like nothing. We did a ‘Biggest Loser’ as a family a few years ago and he and my mom were a team. He won even though my mom lost no weight! My dad is also resistant to external motivation, so the best I can hope for is to be a good example. So, Dad, please take care of yourself. I love you.

Tired of keeping all your Turbo Fire paraphernalia in the box it came in? I sure was. So I got mad crafty! I took the Turn Up The Burn guide book, Inferno plan and Fuel the Fire to Kinko’s FedEx Office and had them 3-ring punched. Then I bought a nifty red binder from Office Depot. Then I downloaded copies of the schedule from Beachbody.com. Lastly, I picked up some reward stickers which can be found wherever fine stickers are sold.

I shouldn’t have had them punch holes in the cover of the Turn Up The Burn guide because I ended up using it as the cover of my binder. Live and learn.

Here’s the schedule for month 2, and look! I’m doing so well! Look at all those stickers!

FedEx Office sliced off the binding, too, I should mention. I hardly lost anything and it is so nice having it all together. Turn Up The Burn…

The Inferno plan…

Fuel The Fire…

And the back pocket makes a nice catch all.

I use the outside back pocket to keep the schedule that came with the set in, so I have my workout for the day at a glance.

I am also considering getting some 3 hole punched CD sleeves to keep my CDs in the binder, too. I may wait until the paper case gets trashed, though.

Edited 8/25:
I noticed that the stupid cardboard case has been scratching up my CDs! I am definitely going to be transferring them to plastic sleeves in my binder.

Further, I had another idea: you could keep binders on each program you finish! One for Turbo Fire, one for Insanity, etc.

Man, that first month was tough! It wasn’t until the second to the last workout of week 4 that I could get through the whole thing without taking a breather, but, hey!! The important thing is that I got to that point! I’m feeling pretty good about that.

I am also feeling much more in control, less being dragged through a workout. AT LAST.

I also weighed in at Weight Watchers this morning and I was down 3.6 pounds for the week! Holy Cow! That brings me to -6.2 for 4 weeks of Turbo Fire! I’m happy- especially since I haven’t been eating all that well.

Ok, this is huge for me. I did ALL of Fire 55 EZ tonight without having to pause the workout and catch my breath! That’s HUGE! I actually felt like I wasn’t getting dragged, and this is only, what, workout 22? Just shoot me of I ever let my conditioning go like this again, ok?

Last night was HiiT 30 Sculpt 20, and I procrastinated so long I started my workout well after 11pm. Geez. I’m just glad I did it.

My knees are also feeling better, stronger, and I definitely owe that to not skipping the Stretch 10 portions of the workouts or the strength workouts.

This week I am dedicating to my 11 month old son (DSW). I want to be around to see him grow up as long as I can, and taking care of myself is going to be the key. I am going to nail all 6 of my workouts this week, get my water in, and stay off the caffeine.

At my Weight Watcher’s meeting this morning I was down .5 for the week. Whatever. I know I worked harder than that. I have reached the point where I am tired of sabotaging myself with my diet. It is time to clamp down and track.

The meeting was about setting goals for the summer, so here’s mine. I don’t like weight-related goals. You can’t control if your body loses 5 pounds or 15- that isn’t up to your conscious, decision making mind. I like process-oriented goals- I can control how many workouts I get in, wether or not I track, etc. So my goals, by Labor Day…

Last night I went to do Fire 45 EZ and about 20 minutes in I realized I was doing the regular Fire 45. That thing is hard! So I have a free substitution of EZ for the hard one down the line.

There were many, many times this week (like, say, SIX) where having this week dedicated to my mom got me up off my hinder. One evening I had fallen asleep on the couch, woken up around 11 pm and still got my Turbo on! Some things are getting easier (I said easiER, not easy), but I am still looking forward to the day when my conditioning is in a place where I can feel like I am driving the workout instead of getting dragged.

New workouts this week…

Fire 45 EZ
What does that say that this is my favorite workout of the bunch? The EZs are just a little slower which feels more in control. This one also had no Fire Drills, which I found myself missing. Some fun, dancy choreography, too.

Tone 30
I hate the word “tone”. It supports the erroneous idea that women ‘bulk up’ if they lift weights. It is a word invented by women’s magazines. I have been dreading this workout because I didn’t want to hear about how I was ‘toning’ or doing anything of the sort. I, a strong modern woman, lift weights. I don’t ‘tone’. So I was thrilled that Chalene never uses the word ‘tone’. The only time it is used is in the main menu on DVD. The workout, itself, is everything I’ve come to expect from Chalene and her approach to strength training: it is creative, challenging, and you are going to be sore in various and sundry places the following day.

My mom got good news today, the cancer was not found in her lymph nodes, nor in any of the surrounding tissues. She still has 6 weeks of radiation, but this is the best news she could have received!

Other successes this week:
Workouts: 6/6
No Caffeine: 7/7
8 Glasses of Water: 5/6
Journal Everything: not so much

Behold! The Ryka XT 2! I purchased these when my knees began to bother me and I figured my Ryka Affirms had given out (it is so hard to tell when you only wear them indoors and they show zero wear!). They no longer made the Affirms (because I bought them WAY back in 2005), so I scoured the reviews on Zappos as far as fitness trainers went and for Turbo Fire the reviewers were pretty much split between this shoe and an Asics model. So I went with the one that looked the best. (I’m hoping these will match the forthcoming Turbo Fire apparel, if Beachbody ever releases it!)

I am really happy with this shoe. (I’d be happier if I wasn’t working out on carpet, but that is another post) They have great lateral support, and nice cushioning. I am a big fan of Rykas, in case you haven’t guessed, and I love how well the shoes cater to the activity you are doing. They have “studio” shoes for people who take a lot of fitness classes (and even subcategories there: some are more geared to dance-based classes, aqua classes, others are more for athletic-style classes), shoes for cross training, shoes for walking and shoes for running. I get beyond irritated when I go into athletic shoe stores and they only stock running shoes and one or two pairs of cross trainers, and usually fugly ones at that.

Well, I procrastinated so much last night it ended up turning into this week’s rest day so I’m going to be re-arranging things a little: tonight will be Fire 45 EZ! That will be my first time seeing that workout. Seeing? What am I talking about? I’ll hardly see any of it with all the sweat pouring down my face!

I went to Weight Watchers this morning (6 AM!) and weighed in… -2.4 since starting Turbo Fire 2 weeks ago! In the meeting, our leader challenged us to earn 5 more active points this week (burn an additional 500 calories, essentially), I just sat there thinking, “holy crap, woman! Do you have any idea how many calories I am burning already? I don’t think I’ve got another 500 in me! Maybe Suzy Jazzercise over there has another 500.”

Anyway, Weight Watchers is starting a 6 week challenge/ giveaway. If you are a member, you just need to sign up for the challenge and track your activity for the next 6 weeks. They have weekly prizes and then at the end they are giving away 10 X-Box 360 Kinect bundles with tons of fitness games (which would be great for those active rest days). I need one so bad- we still have our old crappy X Box that doesn’t even connect to the Internet.

That's What I'm Talking About

Currently Training For:

The Avengers Half Marathon- DisneylandNovember 16th, 2014

http://www.rundisney.com/avengers-half-marathon/

Ahem.

I am not a fitness or health professional. This blog is strictly for entertainment. I am not responsible if you do one f the crazy things I do and you get hurt. I'm not a doctor, either, so don't come cryin' to me.